The disclosures of the following are hereby incorporated by this reference: application Ser. No. 13/019,296, filed Feb. 1, 2011 and issued on May 13, 2014 as U.S. Pat. No. 8,720,105, application Ser. No. 11/838,097, filed on Aug. 13, 2007 and issued on Feb. 1, 2011 as U.S. Pat. No. 7,877,924, and Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/837,376, filed Aug. 11, 2006.
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to strike indicators and/or floats for fishing, and attachment methods for said indicators or floats. More specifically, the invention relates to indicators or floats that are attached to a fishing line or leader substantially or entirely by a friction-fit or interference-fit between the line/leader and the indicator/float and/or by the line/leader being threaded or slid through a circuitous path in the indicator/float.
Related Art
Fishing floats are common in both lure, live bait, and fly fishing, and many attachment systems are known for attaching the floats to lines and leaders. In lure or live bait fishing, where total weight of the fishing setup is not so critical, many floats are tied, hooked, or clipped onto fishing lines, for example, using spring-loaded hooks or clips. In fly fishing, where total weight is of great importance, the floats, which act as strike indicators, are often “gripped” onto a leader, using a stretchable, rubber gripping member, also called a “rubber band” or “grommet” such as is well-known in the art. Such a grommet extends all the way through a longitudinal bore in the float and protrudes from each end of the float. Such a grommet is typically an elastic tube, or an elongated, elastic strap with enlarged ends. Typically, the grommet is stretched by the fisherman so that the grommet becomes longer and thinner to provide room for the leader to be slid into the bore by means of a side slot that runs end-to-end on the float. Once the resilient grommet is released by the fisherman, the grommet contracts to its normal length and thickness and, in doing so, expands to fill the bore space. The grommet pushes the leader against the bore surface, so that the leader is trapped between the rubbery, gripping surface of the grommet and the bore surface, and, hence, is retained inside the float.
More-recently-developed, alternative fly fishing float attachment systems comprise rubbery and/or resilient grippers at or near each end of the float. These grippers encircle the leader at or near the ends of the floats but do not extend continuously through the float. For example, see FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 illustrates a float F, with two generally tubular prior art grippers GT on the leader L and inside the float F. These tubular grippers GT are each about ⅕-⅓ as long at the float, and the leader extends through the hollow center of each gripper, with a snug fit of the leader in the gripper. Each gripper GT resides inside the end of the bore of the float, as shown in FIG. 1, forming a snug fit of the gripper with the interior surface of the bore. Thus, the grippers GT connect the leader to each end of the float. The float with pre-installed grippers GT is supplied in the retail package with a thin looped wire (not shown) pre-installed through the grippers and float; the user installs the float and gripper assembly on a leader by inserting the leader through the loop of the wire, and pulling the other end of the wire away from the float to pull the loop with the trapped leader also through the float and grippers. This technique is much like needle-threading devices known in the hand-sewing arts. Such a float and gripper assembly is a “one-use” assembly, which is not removable and reusable on a different leader.
FIG. 2 illustrates a prior art float F and gripper embodiment, generally similar to that in FIG. 1, but wherein the grippers GB are generally oval-shaped and wherein the user may install the float and grippers on the leader before “snugging” the grippers into the ends of the float. The fairly complex installation method recommended for this apparatus results in the two grippers gripping the leader tightly and also gripping the float tightly.
These prior art methods of attaching a float to a fly fishing leader are fairly light-weight options, but still there is a need for an improved attachment system. There is needed an improved float that is particularly well-adapted for convenient and reliable attachment, sufficiently light-weight for fly fishing, and that is easy to use.